Cracks In the Foundation
by MissCar
Summary: Sometimes the only way to understand the present is to understand the past. This week: The beginning of affair and the end marriage. This story has been discontinued
1. September 1, 2001

With this story, I am going to be trying something different. Instead of telling this story in the normal linear way, the story will be going back and forth in time. The majority of scenes will take place before HSM1 or between the other films. This story is in the same universe as my other story _It All Falls Apart_. However, you do not have to read that story to understand this one, since everything in this story is happening before the events in that story.

Don't worry at the end of the story I will provide a guide that will put all the chapters in chronological order.

There are many characters in this story. However, all events will revolve around Troy, Sharpay, and Chad even if they are not in the chapter.

Summary: Sometimes the only way to understand why your life is falling apart is to take a good look at the moments that led to that point.

Pairings: C/S (Complicated relationship), TB/S (primarily friendship but not quite), TM/R, J/OC, TB/OC, S/Z, TM/C, L/V and G/TB (primarily falling apart)

Disclaimer: I do not own high school Musical

Chapter one: The Great Tree House Incident.

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September 1, 2001

11-year-old Sharpay Evans stood in front of her father as tears ran down her face. "Dad I don't wanna go." She replied in almost a screening cry.

"It is for the best pumpkin," replied Vance Evans.

"I don't want to go to Rhode Island, daddy. I would have to leave all my friends behind to leave everyone. Don't make me leave Troy. I can't leave Chad, not now daddy. Not after his mom just died."

"Don't you want to be with her brother again? You will get to go to the same school. You love your aunt Carol." Vance said in reply completely ignoring his daughter's concerns.

"I want to stay here."

"Honey, with your mother at the spa, I feel it would be best if you lived with your aunt and your brother for a while.

"I don't wanna go. Please dad don't make me go." The tears were coming down even faster now.

"Honey, I cannot look after you and the company. Besides, Rhode Island may be better for your mom after she gets back from her vacation."

"Please stop lying dad. I am 11 years old, not stupid. Moms not at a spa, she is in rehab. I have been hiding the bottles since I was five." Vance seemed completely shocked his daughter's confession. "You don't care about her, you don't care about me, just how people see you. You're sending us a way because you're more concerned with your image than anything else. Do you love us dad?"

"A course I do honey."

"Then don't make me leave daddy. Don't take me away from my friends." Sharpay screamed at the top of her lungs as she fell onto the floor of her room.

"I have made up my mind your leaving tomorrow, your nanny Margarita will be up to in a few minutes to help you pack." Without a single look back of his crying child, Vince Evans left the room.

Within seconds Sharpay was out that the back window and down to the gardens below. She ran for blocks to the house that became her second home. She ran to a tree house that became her sanctuary from all the pain. However, she knew that the house and the tree house could not be that place anymore. The police tape was gone from the front door, but a for sale sign stood in the front lawn.

Sharpay walked to the back of the house across the grass and up to the tree house that her friends and Guardians created. She expected to be alone out there now that Chad lived with his uncle several blocks away. Instead, her best friend sat in the corner with basketball in hand.

"Are you hiding too?" He asked from the shadows.

"He's making me leave," Sharpay whispered in tears.

"What!" Chad exclaimed as he dropped his basketball and made his way through his friend.

"He's sending me to live with Aunt Caroline and Ryan." Sharpay said as she grabbed on to him.

"It will be okay, you miss Ryan. You two will be together again. I know you hate that Ryan goes to that private school in Rhode Island."

"You always look on the bright side of everything. I will miss you more than I miss Ryan now." She said it in almost a whisper.

"You will come back?" He said it as more of a question than anything else.

"I promise I will come back to you," she responded looking into his eyes. She will never know who made the first move and years from now, she would not understand why it happen. In seconds, his lips were on hers and she never felt more complete in her entire life. At that moment, Sharpay wonder if you can fall in love at 11.


	2. September 7, 2004

Disclaimer: I do not own high school musical

Chapter two: Down with the status quo?

September 2004

14-year-old Sharpay Evans sat in the front seat her Cousins Casey ruby red convertible, applying her makeup as Ryan looked on from the back. She wanted to make the perfect impression at her very first day of high school and her first day back in New Mexico after three years away.

She recognized him immediately as he walked past the car. It was the first time she saw him in three years. He looked completely different and exactly the same. The clothes were different, the friends were different (except for Troy), his body was different and yet his hair was still as puffy as ever. She wondered if he would recognize her. Gone were the blue jeans and baggy T-shirts, in their place were the latest from Prada and Juicy. Her hair was lighter now and what it used to be. Inside she wondered if everything could be the same as it was three years earlier.

She wrote him almost every day during her exile. However, he never wrote her back. Maybe it was just hard for him to adjust to living with his aunt and uncle.

"Do not even think about it Sharpay. He's not on the list." Casey said from the driver's seat.

"What are you talking about? What list?" Sharpay asked in complete puzzlement.

"Sharpay, East High is a lot different than Newport Prep."

"Well, this is a public school," Ryan pointed out.

"That has nothing to do with it. At Newport you could be who you wanted to be. You did not have to stick to one group or click. Here at East High nothing could be farther from the truth. When you walk in these doors, today people are automatically going to decide who you will be for the rest of your high school career. If you're a jock, you're a jock. You cannot be anything other than that. You can't move beyond that."

"Why" asked Ryan from the back of the car.

"Because that's the way it is here." Casey replied.

"So what does this have to do with me talking to Chad? He was my best friend before we left." Sharpay questioned her cousin.

"It doesn't matter. Besides that was elementary school. This is high school. At this high school, the jocks do not hang out with the thespians. You Sharpay are a thespian. I even think you will take my place as president of the drama club the year."

"I would make a wonderful president. I look to know I would look fabulous on a campaign poster." Sharpay as she looked at herself in the mere one more time.

"But if you hook up with him" Casey said as she pointed to Chad. "You can kiss all chances of you becoming the ultimate diva of the school good bye. What's more important to you Sharpay, him or being the most popular girl in school?"

A/N: I wrote this chapter to illustrate how keeping to the status quo could have been indoctrinated to the students during their first year.


	3. July 2007: Ghost of childhood past

Thank you to everyone who is reading this story. Especially to those who reviewed, your comments gave me some ideals for this story and _It All Falls Apart. _

I personally had a week where everything fell apart, so I will not be updating _it all Falls Apart _or _Scenes from Freshman Year_ for a few days. A good friend of mine is currently in intensive care after a very serious car accident last weekend. She is the one person who always encouraged me to try new things. She encouraged me to stop being afraid and start writing publicly. That is why I started posting stories on this web site. This situation along with other things took a lot of my energy this week.

Also after this Chapter, the stories will no longer be coming in chronological order. So please pay attention to the dates at the top of each story.

This story takes place during the golf course scene in HSM2

**Title:** Ghost of Childhood Past

**July 2007**

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Darby looked at him as if she had no clue of who he was, even though she spent more time with his mother than he did. Even Sharpay stopped pretending that there was not a time where she and he were more than enemies. Had he really changed that much in six years? She looked the same, except sober. It was the first time Chad remembers ever seen her completely aware of everything. Maybe Darby was too wasted in the past, to remember him now. Unfortunately, he remembered her. Each moment with Darby on the course seemed to last a painful eternity. Sharpay and the rest were hundreds of feet away from Darby and himself. The situation was becoming painful for Chad.

"You have her eyes," Darby said in a whisper as she grabbed a club from Chad's hand.

"What?" Chad replied in confusion not understanding her comment.

"You have Dominique's eyes. You look so much like her. She would be so proud of you now."

"I wouldn't know. I barely remember a time when my mother was not stoned or completely wasted. I do not remember a time when she was not sporting the heroin chic look. I have no idea what she really looked like. I barely remember a time when she actually cared about something other than getting a fix. I thought she quit that last summer, but apparently, I was wrong. I do not care anymore. she didn't love me. Not like, she should have. "

"She loved you, you know." Darby said as she hit the ball down the fairway, "She just loved other things that she wasn't supposed to." Darby said the last part so quietly that Chad did not hear her.

"Not enough to stay sober," Chad replied almost on the verge of tears. Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves Chad finally asked, "How long have you been clean Darby? "

"It will be six years in September." Darby looked almost guilty as she said the words.

"That's great, at least mom didn't die in vain now. Her death saved your family, how touching." Although his voice sounded sarcastic, in his mind Chad was glad that Sharpay would not have to go through what he did.

"Why are you working here this summer?" Darby asked as they began making her way over to the others.

"I'm trying to earn money for a car."

"Despite everything I know for a fact, she left a trust fund for you. The sale of the house must have added to that?"

"I'd rather earn the money for my own car. " The truth of the matter was that Chad viewed the trust fund as dirty money. He may have financial security; but it came at the price of his mother. He would not touch that money for anything, unless he had to.

"So self sufficient just like Domini. She would never take a handout from anyone."

"Yes I am exactly like my mother, except I will never be her. I would never choose some stupid addiction over my own child. " Even though he was caring Mrs. Evans golf clubs he somehow managed to catch Up to Sharpay and her little Pink golf Car in record time. Slamming the clubs in the back of the car, an extremely agitated Chad sat next to Sharpay.

"She said something stupid?" Question Sharpay.

"She said I had Dominique's eyes." Chad said in a near whisper.

"I'm sorry," Sharpay, said in the quietest voice possible as she grabbed his hand. For a fleeting second Chad swore he saw his childhood friend again. However, within seconds she let go of his hand and walked out of the pink car to chase after Troy. He now realizes his childhood friend is gone forever, only her ghost remains. At that moment, Chad vowed to never lose a friend again to Evans family values. He may have lost Sharpay to the familial lust for power and greed; however, he will not lose Troy to the same thing.


	4. May 2008: A Night to Repress Part 3

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Also, my friend is doing much better. Thank you for your kind words.**

**I know in the last chapter I said the section would start coming out of chronological order. However, after writing chapter 4 of **_**It All Falls Apart **_**I realize that in this part of the story needs to be released now. The next chapter will go back to December 2006. I've decided to divide the events of the prom into three parts. I will be telling that story in reverse.**

**This chapter will definitely earn the T rating.**

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**Chapter 4: A Night to Repress: Part Three **

**May 24, 2008 1:25 AM.**

Zeke held on to her hand as they walked through the halls of the fifth floor of the Evans Hotel in the heart of the city. Sharpay was absolutely terrified that one of the staff members would recognize her and her purpose for being in the hotel that night. She could just picture them calling her father and telling him all about her late-night activities. Not that her parents were even in the country right now. Why on earth did her boyfriend have to reserve them a room in a hotel that was owned by her parents? she could have got them a better room anyway. Instead they were on the same floor with many of their classmates all about to do the exact same thing. Something Sharpay wasn't sure she was ready to do any more.

This afternoon she was ready to have sex with Zeke, she even told him so. But now she wasn't so sure. Even though she didn't love him, she did care about him a lot and therefore was ready to go through with this crucial act. But now she understood why she couldn't love him. He was not the one. She was already in love with someone else and have been for years.

It only took one night with her worst enemy to figuree it out. However, her own stupid actions ruined any chance of the two of them being together. She couldn't give her heart away to someone else when she didn't have it any more. Sharpay didn't think she could go through with the act anymore now that she was aware she could never love Zeke. She knew many of her country club "friends" viewed sex as entertainment or a simple release of tension. Sharpay believed that love must be involved in the act itself.

As soon as they walked into the hotel room he began to kiss her in a desperate fashion. She was on the bed before the door was completely close. This gave her the impression that they were only here to do one thing. Normally she enjoy kissing him, but today his kisses felt empty. There was no love or compassion in his kisses just one-sided desire on his part. She couldn't help but compare his kisses to her first two kisses ever. She felt more love and passion in those two kisses than in any other time in her life. Now she just felt dirty.

The touch of his hands on her body made her feel uneasy. Like his hands didn't belong there. As he began to massage her breasts through the pink material of her prom dress she began to feel nauseous. Every kiss and touch made her feel more uncomfortable. The final straw came as he kissed her neck as he lower the zipper of her dress.

"I can't do this," Sharpay said in a quiet voice.

Instead of stopping, he continue to place kisses on her neck and shoulders as he began to lower her dress again.

"Zeke stop, I can't do this anymore." Sharpay said this time in a much louder voice as she began to pull away from his touch.

"I know you're scared but I promise not to hurt you." he said as he tried to finish undressing her.

"I said stop. Don't touch me." Sharpay said almost yelling at him as she began to put her dress back on properly.

"Sharpay can we talk about this," Zeke said as he grab her.

"I don't want to do this," she said as she pushed him to the floor and ran out the room as tears began to fall from her eyes. She felt like falling down to the floor and crying, but she couldn't do that. He was probably following her. At this moment she was happy they were in her parents hotel. She would go downstairs to the front desk and grab a copy of the key to her private suite, change her clothes, and cry her eyes out in the privacy of her own room. In her effort to leave Zeke behind, she did not see the curly hair man who watched the entire incident.

Three days later Zeke would give her a gift basket filled with baked goodies in apology and she forgave him for the incident. Because anything was better than being alone.

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**A/N: I have Chapter 5 ready and will post it later today (5/23/2009) or early tomorrow.**


	5. December 30, 06 Lessons on Breaking Free

Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Some of the reviews were hilarious.

The next few chapters of the story will not have Sharpay in them. Which is sad because she is my favorite character.

This chapter will take place the day before Gabriella and Troy first meet at the ski lodge in HSM1.

What if Gabriella's best friend came with her to the ski lodge with her?

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Chapter 5: Lessons on Breaking Free

December 30, 2006

Troy was exhausted. Five days filled with snow boring and afternoon basketball games with his dad, had completely warn him out. All we wanted to do was sit in the hotel room and eat room service until his mom made him do something else. As he walked to his room, he noticed a girl around his age struggling to hold onto a baby and her bags as she struggled to walk down the hallway of the ski large.

"Here let me help you with your bags." Troy asked as he walked toward the young woman.

"Thank you, she's kind of a handful right now." Replied the woman

"Don't worry about it" Troy said as he the grabbed diaper bag and other packages from the woman. "She's adorable baby. How old is your little sister?"

"She's not my sister," the woman replied quietly.

"Niece?" Troy questioned.

"She is my daughter and she's a little under three months old."

Troy had no idea what to say. He knew theoretically that people his age had children. However, he knew of no one at East High who had a child. at his high school abstinence was preached from the rooftops and anybody who has a child as a teenager would probably be crucified for breaking the status quo.

"You do not have to say anything. I already know it's an unfortunate situation. I love my daughter anyway. My name is Alexis by the way, But, everyone calls me Lexis."

"My name is Troy, it's nice to meet you. So are you enjoying your time here?"

"It's okay. My best friend is moving away to New Mexico next week. My Aunt and my best friend's mother Maria thought we use a proper goodbye vacation. Although, I think the whole thing is an excuse to keep my aunt from breaking Into a crying jag over her player ex-fiancé Jordan. Of course my friend rather read a book right now and then go snowboarding. I guests surviving rehab would do that to a person."

"Was your friend in a bad accident?" Troy asked assuming that would be the only reason a person would be in a rehabilitation program.

"I was referring to rehab involving addiction recovery. I love my best friend but she has a tendency to run away when things get difficult. When her father got sick and later died she ran straight for the bottle." Troy was a little shocked to hear someone be so open about a situation that should be kept private. Alexis seen like the type of person who didn't believe In keeping secrets.

"In addition, this little one is definitely not ready for the slopes." Alexis said as she gestured to her baby girl. Therefore, I've pretty much been lounging and shopping with little Hope. "It's funny you say your friend is moving to New Mexico. I'm actually from Albuquerque myself. What city is she moving to?"

"She is moving to Albuquerque as well. It would be funny if you guys end up in the same school. But that probably won't happen."

"Probably not, there are several high schools in the area." He hoped her friend didn't end up at East high. He could just imagine how the social hierarchy would treat someone going through addiction recovery.

"So what have you been doing on your vacation here?" Alexis ask as they stopped in front of one of the suites.

"I've done some snowboarding here and there. Mostly, I've been playing basketball with my dad."

"There's a court here. I love playing basketball. My basketball skills were one of the few things my biological father gave me. I was on the junior high team for all three years. Unfortunately, I couldn't play this season because I was seven months pregnant during tryouts. Instead I did the school's academic bowl with my best friend and have a part in one of my aunt films. I'm trying to get into shape to try out in 10th grade. ." Troy were shocked to discover the beautiful girl was two years younger than him and had a child. But he didn't show his surprise, instead he asked, "If you want someone to play with while you're here I would be more than happy to help you train for next season."

"It's almost time for Hope's mid-day nap, maybe I can put her in the stroller and bring her down to the court. For some reason, the sound of a basketball game calms her. I really would like to do something other than eat and watched television today. Unless you have other things to do?"

"No, I have nothing else to do this afternoon. Let me go change and I will meet you back here in 20 minutes."

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Alexis was so different from anyone else he ever met before. she was honest and didn't try to hide the truth. She was great at doing many things and really didn't care if she did not live up to the preconceptions of other people. She was even a wonderful basketball player, almost as good as him. Considering she was two years younger and just gave birth almost three months earlier, she was probably better than him. In between the games they talked about everything from high school to Troy's desire to be more than just the basketball guy. He had never been more comfortable with anybody in his entire life.

"I wish I could be more like you Alexis. You are not afraid of being yourself. You can be an actress, basketball player, a brain, and a mother all of the same time. In the other hand, have allowed myself to become stuck in one category." Troy said as they took a break from playing.

"I'm absolutely terrified of being myself and being judged by the world for things I cannot control. But I do not have the time to obsess over it. From what you told me about your high school, it's not the most supportive environment for being an individual. But I think eventually you realize that you have to be yourself and that you can be more than just one thing. Tomorrow, I want you to do something that you've never done before. I want you to break free from yourself."

"I'll try," Troy answered back.

"Maybe when you get back to school you can ditch the cheerleaders and ask out the drama club girl you talked about." Alexis shot back.

"I'll think about it."

"That's all I ask.

Halfway through the second game a loud shriek came from the stroller on the side of the makeshift court.

"I believe princess is ready for lunch or is it dinner. I'm gonna have to take a rain check on this game." Alexis said as she went over to take care of Hope.

"Sure, maybe we'll meet up some other time to finish? "

"Maybe," she responded hesitantly as she pushed the stroller out the door.

A few minutes later as Troy grabbed his stuff from the room, he noticed a handmade baby slipper lying on the floor. He grabbed it and put in his bag to give to Alexis later.

A/N: Since tomorrow is a holiday here in the U.S. I hope to have the other two part of the ski lodge story arc up by Wednesday at the latest.


	6. December 29, 2006:Chance Encounters

Thank you to my loyal reviewers who reviewed the last chapter. Thank you to everyone who has read this story.

In chapter 4 of _It All Falls Apart _there is a reference to Jack being tempted by a celebrity name Maddie Rock. Below is the beginning of that story.

Disclaimer: I do not own HSM or MTV

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Chapter 6: Chance Encounters of the Life-Changing Kind

December 29, 2006

Maddie seriously wondered how her best friend Maria Montez talk her into going on this vacation. She was supposed to be in New York promoting her new album _It All Falls Apart and _her first theatrical release _As Quiet As it is Kept. _Instead she was hiding out in Colorado trying to avoid the paparazzi and her ex fiancé. Two weeks ago to the day she caught her fiancé having sex with a barely legal newbie pop star. Now the paparazzi were following her to get the inside story on the breakup and her ex Jordan keeped sending her trinkets of to represent how sorry he was. She could not take it any more.

She was still furious at her boyfriend of two years, for cheating on her with Candy Kane, a trashy Britney Spears knockoff with half the talent and none of the performance skills. She was too angry right now to forgive him and just needed some time to think. Unfortunately, now on every single channel , the two were promoting their new love song. The song that Maddie was supposed to sing with him. Instead of waiting for her to get back from Cleveland and the birth of Hope, to record the song he decided to use that no talent which instead. The trashy pop tart stole Maddie's boyfriend and her song. Maddie wasn't sure which made her angrier losing the song or losing her boyfriend.

Adding to her frustration, Maddie was currently stuck in a ski lift with a complete stranger. She just hoped if he did recognize her or he would be a complete Stalker . At least he was cute in an older guy sort of way. This is what she gets for adopting the Montez problem-solving strategy of running away. Two thousand six will officially go down as the most horrible year ever in her life.

"Why did I come on this vacation?" Complained the man sitting next to her.

"I was starting to think the exact same thing," replied Maddie to the stranger. "So why are you here?"

"My wife thought it would be best if we got away for a few days. So what brings you here?' Of course he was married, life was very cruel to her sometimes.

"In my case my best friend talked me into it. We both had kind a year where everything fell apart. This was supposed to be a chance for us and the kids to recover from the events of the last 14 months. Although, I don't think getting stuck in a ski lift will help in the recovery process. I wonder how much longer we are going to be up here?"

"I have no ideal how long we are going to be here. But if it is going to be a while maybe we should introduce ourselves. My name is Jack Bolton." Jack said as he extended his hand to her.

"I am Madison Bryant." she said using her now legal name instead of her stage name of Maddie Rock . I'm just glad my niece is back at the lodge with her daughter. She already has an irrational fear of being stuck in an elevator. Being stuck on a ski lift would just make things worse."

"You don't look old enough to be a great-aunt."

"You're right about that. Unfortunately, my niece isn't quite old enough to be a mom either, but that just the way it is. The whole situation is part of the reason why everything fell apart this past year. Her pregnancy was one of those unfortunate situations that we as a society try to keep quiet. That why teenage pregnancy and sexual assault will be the focus of my upcoming film. What happened wasn't her fault, even if society blames her for it. Fortunately those responsible will now spend the next five to 10 years in prison." Jack stares at her in shock for a moment before he responded.

"You look really familiar. I know you from somewhere. You just said you were a filmmaker. Are you the person who wrote the film _Singing In the Halls_ and the creator of television show _White America_?" He knew exactly who she was, that was not good. Maybe she should have just used her first name. He was probably a crazy Stalker or worse the paparazzi. She just had to talk about the Alexis situation to a complete stranger. For a celebrity, she really needed to learn to keep her mouth shut in public.

"Yes I am that Madison Bryant. Although I'm kind of surprise you know who I am. You don't look like you're part of the 18 to 34 age bracket that my fans usually come from."

"I teach high school at East High in Albuquerque, New Mexico. If I don't know what my students are watching I have no ideal how to relate to them. _Singing in the Halls _is everybody's favorite film this year, even if it was a made-for-TV movie by MTV. My son knows all the songs. He even sings them in the shower when no one is aroundd. He's actually really good at it. He sounds almost as good as the performers in the film. I personally preferred your TV show _White America_. I really enjoy the realistic look at college life and how you deal with such powerful social issues. It seems odd that the same person who writes a silly song and dance comedy can also write such a socially conscious show like _White America."_

"I'm definitely full of surprises. If your son is such a great performer has he ever tried out for the school play or the choir?" She asked Jack.

"No, he's just on the basketball team. Unfortunately, the school I teach at his very clique oriented. I think most teachers make it worse by not encouraging students to try different things. I'm probably one of the worst myself. I've never suggested for Troy to try anything different.

"You definitely need to work on that next year." Just as she finished speaking Maddie's phone began to ring and she picked It up without looking at the caller ID. .Only the girls were supposed to have this phone number.

"I need to take this call real quick, it's probably my niece."

"Go ahead," Jack said to the woman.

"Hello…Jordan I told you not to call me here. How did you get this number? I'm on vacation from you and what you put me through… We both know that's a lie. Don't say Maddie I love you. If you really love me you wouldn't have slept with Candy Kane now would you? You just want to get back together because it would be good for your image… I don't care if we where America's favorite couple. Until you figure out what's more important to you been being famous and getting laid by some trashy Ho, don't call me. Do not e-mail me. Don't even think about sending me flowers or boxes from Tiffanies. If I see you at my house, I will have security escort you out. Don't even bother with New Year, I canceled my performance on MTV. They were actually okay with it because I promised something better in February. Apparently your brand new squeeze toy will be performing in my place… I don't care that you're sorry Jordan. Give me some time. You cheated on me someone you don't even love. God,if she's only a few years older than Alexis. I love you but I'm not ready to forgive you yet." Madison said as ended the call and promptly turns off her telephone.

"I don't know how he found that phone number. That's my private phone just for the children. I'm sorry that you had to hear that conversation. By the way you're not going to sell that to a tabloid or anything are you?" she said only half joking as tears began to slide from her eyes.

"No, I've been in your situation before and I understand how painful it is. The was a private conversation and it will stay private."

"Thank you." she said as she began to wipe her eyes. "So your partner cheated on you at some point? Were you able to forgive her? I don't know if I can trust Jordan again. It just happened and the pain is still there."

"I don't think the pain ever goes away. It's been five years since my wife had an affair with her ex-boyfriend and first love, and it still hurts. But I forgive her for what she did and were still together."

"Why did you forgive her?"

"Mostly for Troy, my son. I grew up in a home shattered by divorce and I didn't want him to go through that."

"So you stay together for the kids? Is that the only reason?"

"Do you need another reason?"

"It's a good reason. But what happens when your son goes off to college or leaves to live on his own? What will keep your marriage together then?"

"I love her."

"I love Jordan as well. Is that enough to forgive him for what he did?"

"Maybe, maybe not. But that's a decision that you will have to make at some point in the future."

"It would probably be easier to forgive Jordan if the whole mess was not covered by every tabloid in the Western Hemisphere. You probably didn't have that problem?"

"It was a small miracle that the affair didn't make tabloids. My wife was sleeping with some hotel tycoon worth a couple of billion dollars. I don't know if I would have forgive her if all the sordid details were for public knowledge."

"Which tycoon? Tell me, I can keep a secret. I'm not going to tell the National Enquirer."

"Vincent Evans," he replied quietly.

"I know him very well. I used to be the spokesperson for his company a few years ago. Were actually going to shoot singing in the halls part two at one of the hotels next week. The man is very persistent and always had to get his way. He's currently trying to get me to cast his daughter in one of my films. She's a good actress, she just needs to mature a little." Just as Maddie said her final words the ski lift began to move.

"It looks like they finally fixed the mechanical problem." Jack said as the two finally made it to the top of the mountain

"Maybe we can talk some other time. I'm going to be here for a few more days."

"Maybe," was all he said in response.


	7. June 2001:When You Were Young

Thank you to everyone who read or reviewed the last chapter .

I will finish up a ski lodge ark later in the story.

**Disclaimer: I do not own High School Musical or any other recognizable properties in this story.**

**I do own any of the original characters as well as the plot for this story**

Chapter 7: When You Were Young

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June 2001

Dominique Danforth sat in her back lawn watching her son and two best friends play. Even now at almost 11 there games were more imaginative and complex than anything she ever saw before. Chad would create the stories and the other two would act out their parts in his narrative. Today they were playing NBA superstar. Chad was Kobe Bryant and Sharpay was Lisa Leslie and Troy was stuck being the announcer for this game. Jack would probably freak out if he were ever to find out his son was a better performer than athlete.

The tree house was the stage and they were the players in their performances. When the children were five years old they played super heroes and villains. Sharpay would be the superhero and Chad would be the damsel in distress, and Troy would be the evil villain. At seven they would play slayers and vampires. Sharpay would be the slayer hunting her prey and the boys would be her prey. Unfortunately, she did not remember many of their games. Another thing she lost due do to her drug use.

Dominique always wondered why when the kids would play in the backyard Sharpay would always be the hero in what ever game they play. Now that she was out of her alcohol and drug induced haze she understood why. in the real world Sharpay could not save those she loved from their demons. In this fantasy world Sharpay could slay the demon and save her world. This realization made her want to stay clean even more.

60 days after her latest stay at rehab, Dominique fighting to stay sober. Her so-called support system weren't making things any easier. Darby kept coming by trying to get her to use again. One look at the broken little girl in front of her , it would stop her cold before she even touched the little white powder. he couldn't do that Chad again. additional stress was created by her best friend making her keep her dirty little secret from her husband.

"I will be back to pick up Troy later this afternoon. If Jack calls will you tell him I was here." Lucille asked her best friend.

"I can't believe you're making me keep this secret. I can't be your cover any more. I know who you're with. You need to choose Lucy. I can't keep this from Jack. Knowing that you're betraying him like this. I can't betray those three children out there and the one who's in Rhode Island right now. I can't live with this guilt. I need to stay clean and keeping this secret just makes me want to get high again to get over the guilt."

"Don't go back to that place. You're doing so well.

"As if 90 days without my little chemical helpers is such a great accomplishment"

"It's a start."

Yes, and this my fifth trip to detox. Derby was around again this morning to drop Sharpay off.

"Stay away from her. All Derby is going to is bringing back down to her level."

"I know that. This is hard for me. Don't make it any harder. I won't lie for you and don't ask me to. I'm going to go and play with my son. You go and have your midday encounter with someone who's not your husband. I'll drop Troy off at tonight at six." With that Dominique left her friend behind and joined the fantasy world of her child's creation. It was definitely a lot easier to deal with that her current reality.

* * *

A/N I had the fifth chapter of _It All Falls Apart_ mostly done and then My computer shut itself off before I could save the latest changes. So I'm currently rewriting the chapter from memory. I hope to have it up Monday or Wednesday at the latest.


	8. December 2004: Why I Love Troy Bolton

Thank you to everyone who reviewed or read the last chapter.

Neila Cross has agreed to be my Beta. Thank you for all of your help on this chapter.

New chapters are going to be slow during the month of June because my mother is visiting. I have half of the month of July off from work and I am planning to spend most of my vacation writing.

* * *

Chapter 8: Crushed or Why I Love Troy Bolton.

December 2004

During her first three months back in New Mexico, Sharpay was not adjusting well to her new life. It seemed strange to her to have her whole family back together again for the first time since she was five years old. Even so, she was happy to have her family back even if it was mostly superficial. Ryan was back by her side, which she loved the most. Her mom was actually sober for more than just a few minutes at a time, but she was still emotionally unavailable. Her father was there occasionally, when he was not obsessed with his job.

It would be so much easier to adjust if she could have her best friends back. Considering Chad called her a stuck up Ice Princess on the first day of school she seriously doubted they would be anything but enemies ever again. Their fights were legendary. They would get into an argument at least every other day. He her call nasty words that the time now. His words be hurt her more than anyone would ever know and she would use all her acting skills to mask the pain she felt and then shoot back equally hurtful insults.

Now she only showed everyone to cold outer shell she adapted to protect herself from the pain. Not that anyone would guess since all they could see is her icy exterior and think that that is all she is. She played the role of the Drama Diva perfectly and did everything her cousin told her to do. Presently she was the president of the drama club and the most popular girl in school. Except everybody hated her now, including herself. Other than her brother Ryan and her cousin Casey, she really did not have any real friends here. She missed her real friends from Rhode Island, as well as, her real friends in New Mexico from before she was forced to leave. Nowadays the people she hung out with were just followers who wanted to be seen with her.

However, not everybody hated her or treated her as the key to their popularity. One person actually saw _her _as a _person _and that was Troy. He was the only one in East high who acted normally around her and not with contempt or fake pleasantness, although the relationship was not as close as it used to be. At the very least Troy did not despise her like Chad.

He was not just nice to her; he was nice to the entire student body. He treated everybody with respect, which is unusual in a school, which is more divided than most countries at war. Troy spoke to the nerds, the skaters, the drama geeks, and the cheerleaders. He was never cruel to anybody just because they belonged to a certain group. Sharpay wondered why no one ever questioned his unusual behavior. Troy was like that even when they were children; he always had a good heart.

Maybe his goodness was the reason she now had a huge crush on him along with his beautiful smile and fabulous muscular body. He was definitely not the scrawny 11-year-old boy she left behind three years ago. However, it was his kind heart that attracted her the most, even if that conflicted with her ice queen persona. She was still a lonely human being and Troy was the only one who could see beyond the façade. That is why Sharpay Evans was completely in love with Troy Bolton and she knew she would be with him by the end of the week.

Of course, this is what she said last week and the week before that, however, this week would be different. In just a few days, the social event of the season for the freshman class will be held and she just _has _to go with Troy. Not only would that increase her popularity, that would also make Casey happy and Sharpay could now hold a conversation with Troy.

Unfortunately, despite her best efforts he had not asked her yet. Fortunately, he was not going with anyone else. Normally she would just ask him, but according to the 'rules of Casey', that was definitely a no-no. So on the Wednesday before the big dance she waited in homeroom patiently for Troy to ask her. He was sitting in front of her talking to her former best friend about yesterday's game. Sometimes she wished she could still be part of those conversations. Instead, she continued to write Sharpay Bolton on her notebook.

A familiar voice broke through her daydreams. "Do you want to go with me to the winter ball?" Unfortunately, these words came from the wrong boy. The speaker was Zeke Baylor a member of the JV basketball team who was always following her and secretly read cooking books in the library when no one was around. Not that she did not like him, she just wanted Troy instead.

"I'm sorry you're not on the list. I only date boys of a certain caliber. " She knew it was the wrong thing to say. She absolutely hated that stupid list of Casey's. In this situation, it was the easiest way to get the boy to leave her alone and keep her open for Troy's invitation.

Troy did not react to her comments at all, but someone else did. "You are such a stuck up bitch," said the curly headed boy who was sitting in front of her. "You can have just said no instead you are mean about it. What have you been doing the last three years? Taking evil bitch lessens from Casey." His voice was angry and his eyes felt like ice upon her. It felt like he just stabbed her in the heart with his words. She would not let him or anyone else see her cry.

"I'm sure they are working better than the ass lessons you have been taking for the last three years." Her years of experience in the performing arts were the only thing that allowed her to keep her voice steady as their fight continued.

Unbeknownst to them, Ms. Darbus heard their entire conversation. "You will not use that type of language in the classroom, unless it's in the play or textbook that we are reading. Save that passion for the stage. Both of you have detention after school for the next three days."

"But Ms. Darbus I have practice after school every day this week," Chad said in a whiny voice. Did he think about anything besides basketball these days? She had no idea if he did.

"Ms. Darbus we are preparing for the played next week. I have to be able to run my lines." Sharpay said in annoyance at being kept from her favorite activity today.

"You will run your lines this afternoon. You will just do it while you are painting the set. Now any more complaints?" Both stayed silent for a few minutes taking her words in. "Now let's begin today's lesson."

* * *

For the third afternoon in a row, Chad found himself painting scenery for the December musical _Snow in New Mexico_. He blamed Sharpay for his current situation. If she did not act like a carbon copy of Casey, things would be so much easier. If it wasn't for her, he would be at basketball practice right now with his friends. Instead, he was doing hard labor at Ms. Darbus drama work camp. The only fun thing about the entire experience was watching Sharpay try to go over her line while painting the mountain scenery.

He almost got out of the detention. Coach Bolton was furious at Darbus for giving one of his star freshman detention during practice. So upset that he went to talk her into giving him detention at a different time. Unfortunately, once coach found out why Chad was in detention, he completely agreed with Darbus. Instead of getting out of detention, Chad had the misfortune of listening to a Coach Bolton lecture.

"I'm probably the only one here who knows how bad this feud really is. Your arguing is the talk of the teachers' lounge. It is a small miracle that only one teacher had given the two of you detention so far. I will never understand how two people who were so close can now be at each other's throats. You don't have to be friends again, but you need to learn how to be in a room with her without screaming."

Unfortunately, Chad did not want to listen to the coach's words. Why should he try to reach out to her when she was the one who started this entire thing? She was the one who did not call one time in three years. She was the one who was unpleasant to him on the first day of school. She was the one who sent him the cruel letters three years earlier. Three years of resentment and hurt feelings cannot be resolved by two days of forced confinement and hard labor.

10 minutes into the third day of hard labor Ms. Darbus, Sharpay still had not made it back to the stage. "Mr. Danforth will you please go check on Miss Evans. It seems that she hasn't quite made it back yet from her costume change."

2 minutes later, he found her in one of the smaller dressing rooms in the back of the staging area. The door was slightly cracked allowing him to hear her on the phone. The phone was on speaker mode allowing her to finish dressing and allowing Chad to hear both sides of the conversation.

"I miss you so much. I hate it here. I just want to go back to Rhode Island." Sharpay said to her caller moving on the other side of the phone through.

"I thought you wanted to go back to New Mexico. All you talked about the summer was going back to Troy and Chad. You missed both of them so much while you are here. All you ever talked about was Chad and Troy this in Chad and Troy that. You must have written Chad hundreds of letters over the last three years."

Chad found these comments strange. How could she have missed him if she never called him once in three years? The fact that she supposedly had written him hundreds of letters did not make much sense either. Other than the one letter that of nasty things about his mother, he never received anything from her.

"Well apparently he never received a single one of my letters."

"Why not?" Chad wondered the exact same thing as the caller on the line.

"I don't know maybe Darby gave me the wrong address. You know how she."

"Evil wrapped in designer clothing." He agreed with that comment completely. He was also worried that Sharpay was becoming that type of person.

"Exactly."

"Did you ever try calling."

"Darby wouldn't give me the phone number"

"Why would she try to sabotage your relationship?"

"Maybe because he was not on her list. I stopped trying to understand my mother years ago. On the bright side, I think Troy actually did receive one or two of my letters to him. Maybe that is the only reason he is actually still nice to me."

"Oh yes Troy the object of your affection."

"Please stop that Nikki."

"Oh come, on you have a crush on him."

"So what if I do? It does not matter that the only reason he has been nice to me is that he is nice to everyone. There is no way I even have a chance. It was so much easier when we were kids. Can't everything be like they used to be?"

"Sharpay people change. We all know that. What were you expecting to come back to New Mexico and everything be frozen in place like it was three years ago?"

"No, I expected to actually have friends like those that I used to have here and as I did in Rhode Island. I miss all of you people so much. My so-called friends here are with me for the sake of their own popularity. I guess that's what I get for following the rules of Casey."

"You can always change."

"At Rhode Island yes, here, not so much. Once assigned an identity here you pretty much have to keep it for all four years."

"I'm so glad I didn't let your father talked me into coming back with you to New Mexico. I do not think I can handle a school like that."

"I can barely handle a school like that."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Keep chasing after Troy because he's the only one who me as a person. Eventually I want to figure out why Chad hates me so much. Remember all the things I miss from before, but I cannot have now. Sometimes I wished Darby was the one who overdosed. Then I would still have my best friend. It was easier before everything fell apart"

The word shocked Chad too much. He would not wish the fate he suffered on anyone including his worst enemy. Despite all outside appearances, he knew that it was not Sharpay. He continues to listen to her as she poured her heart out to her best friend. Even though Darby was now sober, she was still just as gone as before. He could hear her crying. He always hated seeing her cry. Even when they were little, he could not take her tears.

"I just thought that I could go to the dance with Troy and things would be like the way they used to be. Before everything went to hell. I just want to go back to the way it used to be."

"You think being with him will make everything okay?"

"I don't know. It cannot get any worse. The only people who even talk to me are related by blood or screaming at me. At least you will be here in a couple weeks and I can hang out with my new best friend.

"Actually, that is why I called."

"What?"

"My grandmother is sick. I will not be able to come to New Mexico for winter break."

"That is okay, I understand. Your family has to come first." If he had not spent the first 11 years of his life with her, he would not be able to tell that she was not ok. He could hear her becoming more hurt by the second."

"I knew you would understand. I will be in New Mexico all summer to hang out with you at Lava Springs.

"I do not know if I can make it that much longer in this place."

"Only three and a half years to go. I know you can survive it."

"I will try to."

When the call was over, he knocked on the door. "You were supposed to be in detention 20 minutes ago Sharpay." Chad said in the voice he normally uses with her recently so she would not know that he heard the whole conversation.

"Do have any idea how hard it to get out of this outfit by myself?"

"Unfortunately I'm not an expert on women's clothing. However, you are not an expert yourself."

"Whatever, Danforth. At least I don't look like I got dressed in the dark this morning." She said the words but there was not any spirit there.

"The sooner we get up there, the sooner we can leave and I know that you want to get yourself all pretty for tonight's ball."

"I don't have a date. Just because you hate me now does not mean you can be mean to me."

"I didn't mean anything by the comment. I meant that you have to go to the ball. That's what most socialites like you, do."

"Everyone has a date." She mumbled under her breath, but he heard every word. Her words gave him the perfect Idea to make her tears go away. He would make sure she would have one good evening even if he had to bribe his best friend to do it.

* * *

To be continued in Chapter nine: December 2004: My date with …


	9. 12 2004: My date with Sharpay Evans

A/N: Recently, I watched HSM3 again with my nieces on vacation and noticed that Troy said he never went to a school dance before. This contradicts information given in HSM2 where there's a school dance picture sitting on Troy's night stand. Therefore, I'm going to go with the information that works best in my story and ignore anything else. Because apparently that's what the writers of the actual films did.

Special thanks to Neila Cross for being a wonderful bata

Also beginning with this chapter, I am going to adjust the main character settings of the story to reflect the main characters for the specific chapter.

Pairings for this chapter: Troy/Sharpay

* * *

Chapter 9: My date with Sharpay Evans

December 2004

Troy Bolton did not like school dances at all. He found the whole school dance thing overrated. That is why he refused to go out with anyone to the Winter Ball. Even though six cheerleaders, three members of the girl's volleyball team, and one member of the golf team asked him to the dance. He went to one dance in junior high and absolutely hated it. His date for the evening was a junior high cheerleading captain Bianca Jones, also known as the shallowest girl on campus. He found out later that the only reason she wanted to go to the dance with him was that he was the captain of the junior high basketball team. Apparently, cheerleaders were only supposed to go out with basketball players.

After four months of being at East High Troy was beginning to see a very similar pattern at this school. Even though he tried to be friends with everyone no matter what group they were in, he felt pressured to stick to his own clique. Other than Chad and Jason, he really did not like most of the people in the jock/cheerleader group. All they cared about was their sport and their popularity rating. Troy cared about things other than basketball and being seen. He learned very early on to keep those things to himself.

Even though Chad felt the same way as Troy, he encouraged Troy to go along with the way things were. The old Chad would have tried to fight the system. The Chad that existed after his mother's death and Sharpay's departure chose to stick to the status quo. It was as if he believed that nothing he did could make a difference. That is why Troy was shocked when three hours ago Chad showed up in his house begging him to take Sharpay to the dance tonight.

"You want me to take Sharpay Evans the girl that you now call Mountain Lion and Ice Princess to the winter ball even though this would violate the unwritten social laws of East High." Troy practically shouted at his best friend while giving him the 'I think you're crazy' look.

"I thought you hated the ridiculous rules of the school social system?" Chad asked his friend.

"I do."

"So why does it matter? Besides, I am not asking you to take the Ice Queen to the Winter Ball. I'm asking you to take the girl who used to play with us in our tree house."

"I thought you said that girl was dead."

"Maybe I was wrong," the words were whispered so lightly Troy could barely hear them.

"Chad Danforth admitting that he was wrong. Miracles do happen."

"I don't always have to be right" Troy just looked at Chad as if he knew he was lying.

"I overheard her to talking to one of her friends from Rhode Island today." Chad said this without making eye contact with Troy.

"What did you hear?"

"I'm not going to tell you. I probably should not have been listening. Maybe things are not the way I thought they were. I am not sure. I need you to take Sharpay to the dance to see if she's still Sharpay or if she is becoming Darby 2.0. Please?" Troy knew his friend's request was very heartfelt. He knew that it wasn't just some practical joke.

"If you want to know so badly, why don't you take her to the dance? Besides what is so bad about Darby?" Troy was very curious as to why Chad was so worried about Sharpay being like her mother. Chad definitely spent more time with the Evans family than Troy did. Troy was not even sure if he ever met Sharpay's parents. He may have seen Sharpay's parents at Dominique's funeral, but he did not really want to think about the media circus created by her death three years ago. Sharpay's parents were always gone when they were little. Actually until he was eight, he thought Sharpay's nanny Margarita was her mother.

"You mean besides the fact that she got my mom to try heroin for the first time?" Chad's voice was emotionless; however, Troy could still feel Chad's pain. "Darby Evans only cares about Darby Evans. She is the most selfish person on earth. She has done things to people over the years that should have landed her in prison. The only thing she cares about is how people see her. I don't want our friend to become like her." The last part was barely audible.

"I can see you have a point there. But I still think you should be the one to go with her." Troy suggested hoping that maybe if the two spent some time together they could finally have a conversation without screaming.

"She wants to go with you." Chad said with a shrug.

"I'm going to have to wear a suit. Because it's so short notice it's going to be the suit grandma got me to wear to religious services with her." Troy responded in a very whiny voice.

"You're my best friend you have to help me. I know you're tired of the fighting."

"Find I'll her take her, but you owe me."

That was how, against his better judgment, Troy ended up going to the winter ball with Sharpay Evans. Everything went good for the first half hour. Instead of the high school version of Sharpay who is overly selfish and conceited, he was with the elementary school Sharpay. Pre-high school Sharpay was always herself and didn't care what other people thought of her. She was intelligent and funny. This Sharpay was definitely more entertaining than most of the cheerleaders and nowhere near as plastic.

Unfortunately, Sharpay overheard Chad telling his so-called friends that Troy was only with Sharpay tonight as some sort of pity date. Troy knew that Chad only said that to keep the rest of the group from asking too many questions. Chad and Troy have both become very good at playing the EHS game. However, Sharpay took Chad's comments at face value and ran away from the dance. 15 minutes later he found her crying on top of the roof singing along to Maddie's Rock's song "I just want" on her MP3 player. He couldn't hear Maddie voice, however, he could hear the pain In Sharpay's voice as she sang every heartbreaking word.

_I do not know how to be myself anymore_

_Too long pretending to be something else_

_I make everyone happy but me_

_Misery is the only thing that has brought me_

_You only see me as the ice queen_

_The super rich bitch who can feel_

_I just want to be myself_

_I've been playing this role for too many years_

_Inside I am just this brokenhearted girl_

_Nothing but tears inside my soul_

_I just want you to love me_

_I want you to see beyond my stupid act_

_I just want to be shown love_

_I want to stop pushing you away_

_I just want you to love me for who I really am_

_I want to let you in_

_I just want you to love me as I am_

As he listened to her sing the words, he knew she was not just singing along. These words are coming from her heart. This is how she really felt. Her tears were coming down harder now. He never liked seeing her cry. He just wanted to make her feel better. He walked over to her as the chorus finished up and placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. However, she pushed him away violently.

"What are you doing up here Troy? It was bad enough that you only brought me here as some sort of practical joke/pity date. Just go back to your friends Troy. I thought you were different. I thought you were the only one who did not buy this stupid system. I just thought that maybe things could be as they were before everything went to hell. I was so stupid. I hate this place. I hate this life." Her voice sounded as if she was on the verge of tears again. Every word she said felt like she was receiving another stab in the heart. Troy tried to hug her again, but she just pushed him away.

"Don't touch me. Just get away from me. I am tired of this sick little game going on. I just wanted things to be as they used to be. I wanted my _real_ friends back. They're both dead. When Dominique died, so did our friendship. It is as if we buried it all on the same day. Troy, was going with me to the dance some kind of joke? Another way for Chad to twist the knife in just a little bit _more_. No one really loves me." The last bit of her composure broke again and tears were falling freely. His heart was breaking in two. Chad's actions really did hurt her. If she was in that much pain now, why did she send that letter? The whole situation kept getting more confusing by the minute.

"That's not what happened." Troy said defensively.

"Tell me Troy, what happened tonight? I wanted you to take me to this dance for weeks. I turned everyone else down because I wanted to go with you. You are the only person who could still see beyond this mask I put on every day. At least I thought you were. I don't know any more. Troy why am I here?" Her words were said in anger and pain with a touch of sadness.

"Chad asked me to take you." Troy answered softly.

"So it was just a sick little joke?" Troy realized that the one thing that didn't change in three years was Sharpay always jumping to conclusions.

"No it wasn't." taking a deep breath to calm his nerves as he continued. "Chad over heard you talking to your friend from Rhode Island."

"You think Danforth would realize it's not nice to listen to other people's conversations?" Sharpay said sarcastically as she fished in her bag for a tissue.

"This is Chad were talking about. Did you really think three years would eliminate his tendency to listen on other people's conversations?"

"Considering that nothing is the same as it was three years ago, yes. "

"He just said that he thought the pre-Rhode Island Sharpay still existed somewhere under the pretense high school Sharpay. He just wanted me to find out if he was right."

"Was he right? Am I more than the stupid ice queen?" Sharpay asked him looking directly at him almost as if she was peering into his entire being.

"You already know the answer to that." Troy said as he held her hand. This time she did not pull away.

"If both of you knew that, then why does he hurt me so badly. Why do you hurt me? He was my best friend since kindergarten. Both of you were my friends. We spent 90% of childhood together. Now all I can get from you is a casual hello. I should be happy, you are the only one at East High that does not hate me or wants me to buy them something. Chad only talks to me when he is calling me a bitch or some other nasty remark. Why does Chad hate me? Why do you hate me? What did I do that was so unforgivable?" She was pleading with him now, begging him to answer the question that he never thought she would ever ask.

"Because of this," Troy said as he handed her the wrinkled letter from his pocket. Chad originally threw the letter in the trash; however, Troy kept it with the intention of asking Sharpay about it one day. When Chad came over to his house this afternoon to ask him to see if their childhood friend still existed, Troy knew it was the perfect opportunity to find out the truth. He watched Sharpay slowly read the letter. He watched her face go from indifferent to shock to rage. Her body gave way and she sunk down to the floor. The tears were falling down on the letter. Her body was shaking and her breathing was sporadic. He only saw her like this one time before, the day Dominique died.

"I didn't write this letter." her voice was shaky and he could hear the pain and infinite sadness as she said the words. "I would never hurt him like that. I wrote him hundreds of letters about how much I missed him and wanted to be back here. I did not write this one. That's not even my handwriting." Sharpay said pleading with Troy to believe her.

Troy could see that she was too heartbroken for this reaction not to be real. He knew instantly the letter was a fake. Then Troy remembered Chad's words from hours ago and instantly knew who wrote the letter. The only question he had is why. How could Darby Evans treat her daughter like that?

"That's why he hates me. At least I know now why he hates me. Is this why neither one of you talk to me anymore?" She looked at him dead in the eyes as she spoke the painful question.

"I'm sorry." He sat down beside her.

"I loved him so much. He was my best friend. Now he hates me. He never got any of my real letters?" The tears were coming down her face harder than ever.

"I don't think so," Troy said as he wiped the tears from her face. He wondered what Darby did to the real letters "If it makes you feel better I don't think he hates you. I don't think he could ever hate you. He was just hurt. "

"Then why did he tell everybody less than 30 minutes ago that this was some joke to get back at the ice queen bitch?"

"He didn't mean it. He was going along with the status quo."

"I hate the status quo" Sharpay said as she began to tear up again.

"So do I," Troy said with a sigh.

"What about you Troy, do you hate me? Do you see me as this ugly person like everyone else does?"

He didn't respond to her in words, instead he leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. She deepened the kiss within seconds. He could taste the salt of her tears mixed in with her strawberry lip-gloss. He could feel her pain as she kissed him back. Fresh tears continued to fall down her cheeks as they continued to kiss. When they pulled apart, he ran his hand across her tear stained face.

"I don't hate you. It's just…"

"This place and the stupid rules." She began to tear up again as she said the words.

"Exactly," Troy said as held onto her more tightly than before.

"Promise me something." She said looking directly into his sapphire eyes.

"Anything," he would have promise her anything at that point to get rid of the tears he saw in her eyes.

"Monday morning when I come up to speak with you just talk to me for a minute. Just be my friend. I cannot handle anything else right now. I just need someone who's not using me."

"I promise," he said as he helped her get up from the ground.

"Can we just leave now?" Sharpay asked as she dusted off her ball gown and found her purse.

"That's fine. I am not a school dance person anyway. Maybe we can just stay up here. Remember when we used to stay up all night in the tree house?"

"We used to have so much fun when we younger." Sharpay said with a smile.

"Everything was so simple back then. We did not have our entire lives planned out for us by other people." Troy said sadly as he began to walk over to the bench.

"Nothing ever goes as planned, Troy."Sharpay said as she followed him.

"One question though, how did you find me up here Troy? I thought I was only one knew about this place." Sharpay said as she wiped her eyes with a tissue.

"When I didn't find you in the auditorium, dressing rooms, or Ms. Darbus' classroom I figured would come up to the gardens. When you were, little you always like to be around flowers. Because they were…"

"Just as beautiful as me. I can't believe you remember that."

"I remember everything about you." She smiled at him as he spoke.

"Thank you for not despising me."

"You're welcome," he said grabbing her hands again.

The rest of the night, they stayed together on this rooftop talking about the last three years and how everything they used to do together. Troy was convinced that somewhere deep inside the public persona of Sharpay Evans lived a little girl who still wanted to save everyone, but could not save herself.

Neither one noticed the curly haired boy waiting by the door watching the entire scene. No one noticed the tear tracks on his face. No one heard the whisper "I don't hate you." When he returned downstairs, he would tell his date that his eyes were puffy because of allergies.

* * *

A/N: This chapter made me cry a lot when I was writing it.


	10. June 7, 2008: Sin and Champagne

Thank you to everyone who read or reviewed the last chapter. I know it's been a while. I know many people are curious as to how Ryan and Taylor got together in the first place. This is they're crazy story.

Special thank you to my beta Neila Cross for all her help with this chapter.

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Chapter 10

June 7, 2008:

Sin and Champagne

It happened again and Ryan was shocked that he thought it could be any different. His father somehow managed to turn his and his sister's graduation party into some sort of corporate event. Ryan couldn't have a birthday party without his father inviting a business associate (or 20 of them) to the festivities. On the bright side, most of them did bring cool gifts like front row tickets to his favorite Broadway show. Tonight only one in every five guests was actually a friend of Ryan or Sharpay. Most were Ryan's friends, because Sharpay refused to invite any of her fake friends to the party.

His sister was currently hiding in one of the suites upstairs after getting into a very loud argument with their mother at the bar. He could not tell what the fight was about because they were too far away however, it didn't look good. Not that Sharpay would tell him what was going on in her life.

Ever since the prom, his sister had been acting strangely. That wasn't quite right. Even before then her behavior was starting to change. The worse was Memorial Day when Sharpay disappeared all day only to be returned by Chad after midnight. She was covered with mud and looked like she spent most of the day crying. Neither Chad nor Sharpay would provide any explanation for what happens.

It seemed that, Sharpay and Chad were spending a lot of time together recently. Every time Chad came to the Evans mansion he was there to see Sharpay not Ryan. The two were always sending text messages to the other and they were always having private conversations that Ryan knew nothing about. It almost felt like Chad was taking over Ryan's place again. When he was stuck in Rhode Island by himself, all Sharpay ever talked about was her best friends Chad and Troy. He was jealous of the two boys. He was mostly jealous of Chad.

He worked out most of his Troy jealousy last summer when Gabriella and Troy got back together again. It's amazing what putting two people together, who really don't belong together; just to spite his sister can do for one's mental well being. Of course, he told himself it was better that they were never together. Because their parents' secret would eventually destroy their relationship once it is revealed.

Even though he was mad at his sister for ditching him for someone else again, he was happy because it gave him more time to hang out with Taylor. Ever since prom, Taylor had become his best friend. They talked on the phone constantly for hours at a time. During the last two weeks of school, he ate lunch with Taylor and Sharpay would disappear with Chad and sometimes Troy. Again, he still had no idea what was going on.

He was friends with Taylor before; however, they really never shared secrets in the past. Now he knew she really didn't want to go to Yale, but her father was making her. Taylor knew that he was absolutely terrified of going to Juilliard. He was afraid he was going to flunk out because his teachers wouldn't provide necessary reasonable accommodations or something like that. He had felt comfortable talking about his learning disability with her - which was normally something he didn't talk about. He could never tell any of this to Sharpay or Kelsi.

He really wanted to spend his graduation party with his new girlfriend. Unfortunately, her parents scheduled her family graduation party on the same night. Even her brother who was stationed overseas managed to come to her graduation. He was not going to keep Kelsi from seeing her brother for the first time in almost two years.

Instead, he wandered the party alone trying to find someone to hang out with. Unfortunately, there wasn't anybody in the main party. Gabriella and Troy were in a corner having one of their trademark fights. Ryan was definitely staying away from those two, although he couldn't help but wonder what they were fighting about this time. Fortunately Mr. and Mrs. Bolton were also invited to the party so Troy would at least have a ride home.

5 minutes later he noticed the Boltons in the hallway engaging in a screaming match that put their sons fight to shame. He wondered if his father was stupid enough to try anything with Mrs. Bolton at the party. However, it seems that Mr. Bolton was the one being yelled at. Ryan was almost positive he heard the phrase "she is just a friend, highly unlikely" as Mrs. Bolton throw one of the CDs from the gift bag at Mr. Bolton. Ironically, enough it was Mr. Evans, his father, that broke up the fight between the not so happy couple before anybody else realized what was happening. Ryan was a little sad because their fight ended. It was the most exciting thing at the party.

After 15 more minutes of being surrounded by fake people, he couldn't stand it anymore. He took a bottle of champagne from the caterers and began to make his way to his own suite. As he walked to his room, he ran across Taylor sitting in the in the hallways reading the news on her cell phone with two empty glasses of champagne sitting next to her.

"I thought I was the only one trying to avoid the party? Isn't it impolite for the guest of honor to ditch their own party?" Taylor asked as she looked up from her cell phone.

"Its my party and I can ditch if I want to. I can't stand most of the people there. 80% of the guests are daddy's business partners or mommy's country club friends. Plus Gabriella and Troy fights are nowhere near as entertaining as they used to be."

"There arguing again. I cannot understand how those two can look like the perfect couple in school when they fight so much." Ryan wanted to tell her it was because Troy had Mrs. Bolton as the perfect example of how to act happy in a relationship when you're screwing someone else behind your husband's back. However, Ryan kept that thought to himself.

"So why are you hiding in the hallway reading CNN . com?"

"I was having fun dancing with my boyfriend until he ran off with your sister. Now I'm waiting for Gabriella to drive me home because she is the designated driver."

"Chances are she probably left the party after she ditched Troy in most dramatic way possible and forgot about you."

At that moment Taylor received a text message from Gabriella.

**FMG: **Sorry I forgot about you. Please find different way home.

"She left me here. She drove off in _my car_ and left me at the party. Some best friend." Taylor said the anger as she shut her phone.

"Don't worry about it. If you want, I can call you a cab." Ryan said reassuring her.

"That's okay, I think I'll just sit here and wait for my boyfriend. If he ever shows up," she mumbled that last part.

"Or you can come with me to my private suite and hang out". Ryan said holding out the very expensive bottle of champagne. "C'mon I want to see what is in the gift bag."

"You don't know what's in the gift bag at your own party?" Taylor asked in surprise

"No, the whole thing was planned by Cam from corporate event planning."

He was almost sure that Taylor was saying no, until she received a new text message from Chad.

**Number one BOY**: Left with S and T. Mrs. B said she would give you a ride home if needed.

"Great my boyfriend left me for your sister." Taylor said in a very angry voice.

"I'm sure it's not like that"

"Whatever, I need to go find the Bolton's to go home."

"Actually you may want to avoid those two for a while."

Just then, they heard shouting from the adjacent hallway. Ryan instantly recognized the voices of Mr. and Mrs. Bolton.

"She really is just a friend honey."

"Friends don't write songs having fantasies about their married friends."

"You would know. Unlike you, I believe in the sanctity of our marriage vows. Just because you screw around does not mean I will. Why don't you go play with your lover right now and leaving me alone? I'm sure he could use a release right about now. " At least now Ryan knows that Mr. Bolton knew about the affair. He always wondered about that. Ryan definitely needed to get Taylor out of here before she found out the real reason why Troy's parents are halfway towards divorce.

"Maybe it would be best if we went to your room. I watched my parent's marriage disintegrate, I don't want to watch anyone else's" Taylor said getting up from the ground.

After quickly running away from the Bolton's without being spotted they ended up in Ryan suite. "My bedroom at my dad's house is not this big. This is like having your own apartment. How did you end up with this?"

"Mom and Dad are away on business a lot. They just got back from opening our brand new hotel in Mumbai. They do not trust us to stay in the mansion unsupervised so we move into the hotel when they're gone. Although, Sharpay is getting tired of the entire arrangement and is moving into the dorms in the fall."

"Does your sister realize that the room in the picture is actually the room and not the closet?"

"My sister has never been known for being practical."

"Very true let's see what goodies we have." Taylor said grabbing the gift bag. "Many DVDs, including all of the Singing In The Halls series; one of which was just released to the movie theaters two weeks ago. _White America_ the complete series, they have not even aired the last episode yet. There are also about five other musical titles in here. Also included Is Maddie rock new CD _Maddie Rock is Dead_ which hit stores in three days. How did your dad get half of this stuff in this bag?"

"Madison and Maddie are friends of the family. This is probably her… I mean their graduation present to Sharpay and me." Ryan almost accidentally told Taylor that the two women are one in the same. He would have to be careful.

"My father won't let me listen to Maddie rock anymore after her song _A 14 year old had a baby_. My dad said it would encourage teenage girl to get pregnant." Taylor said as she grabbed a couple of glasses from the kitchen area.

"Did he even listen to the song? It's about society blindness to the sexual assault of young girls In United States and Elsewhere as well as the tendency to blame the young girls for becoming a victim."

"Probably not. Don't tell anyone but my dad is a closed minded idiot. Sometimes you'll hear me say stupid things that are not necessarily my actual opinion."

"Why do you do that?"

"Because he's my father."

"I would never do that with my dad. Do you really think he is thrilled about his only son going to college on a dance scholarship? He's definitely not thrilled about all the pink and sequences."

"If he wasn't proud, he wouldn't be having this party for you."

"You don't know my dad very well. To him this is just a networking event. " Ryan said as he placed his head in his hands.

"No I don't. I've been meaning to ask you why you are taking the scholarship when your family can obviously afford to send you to school. My dad won't let me apply for any scholarships and your family is in a much higher tax bracket my then father."

"Because it's something I earned and they can't take it away from me if I do something they don't like. Actually, it was dad's idea for some reason, besides daddy is donating enough to the school to give dozens of students' scholarships at Juilliard. Do you want to stay in the living room or go into the bedroom? I have a better entertainment system in there."

"Bedroom, I really want to lie down. I hate these shoes. I don't know why I Gabriella talked me into wearing these." Taylor said this as she kicked off her very high heeled shoes as she walked into the bedroom and sat on the king sized bed. As she did this Ryan noticed how beautiful her legs looked in her silk stockings. At that moment, he had a very improper thought about removing those stockings. He looked away quickly reminding himself that he had a girlfriend and Taylor was just a friend.

"Do you want to watch _Singing In The Halls III_ or listened to the new CD? " Taylor question Ryan from the bed.

"Definitely the CD. I want to know why Mrs. Bolton was freaking out in the hallway."

"The entire thing was ridiculous. There's no way that Coach Bolton Is having an affair with a pop star. She lives all the way in L.A." Taylor pointed out as she poured herself and Ryan a glass of the champagne.

"Actually she is in New Mexico all the time. She owns 10% of Evans Hospitality International. She comes down every couple of weeks to meet with my dad and the other directors of the company. There's a good chance that they met at a Starbucks or something. He could be her New Mexico boyfriend. " Ryan said laughing at the ideal as he placed the CD in the stereo. The CD began to play the title track.

_Maddie rock is dead_

_She was never really here_

_Figment of your Imagination_

_Fantasy to feed your dirty mind_

"I thought your family company wasn't publicly traded." Taylor asked as Ryan sat next to her on the bed.

"It's not. I told you she was a friend of the family." Ryan said vaguely not going into Maddie/Madison's possible family connection.

_You have no idea who I really am_

_You just think you do_

"Oh my god look at the dedication!" Taylor shouted as she pulled Ryan closer to her as she read the dedication. **"With all of my hope and love to my best friend Coach Jay. You are the one who showed me the consequences of being everything to everyone. You were there when I would not let anybody in. You were a shoulder to cry on and sounding board for my crazy thoughts. You deserve better than a love that is breaking your heart. Maybe someday we'll both get our happy ending. Half of the songs on this album are about you. You are my muse, my best friend, and my love."**

_I'm delivery vague_

_Never let anybody in_

_You only see what I let you see_

"Our gym teacher is having an affair with a pop star," Ryan said smiling to himself as he took another drink of champagne. Ryan did not like cheating. However, considering what Lucille Bolton did to his family, Ryan believed the whole affair as some sort of divine payback. As Justin said "what goes around goes back around". If anyone anybody deserves to have their heartbroken it is definitely Lucille Bolton.

"It sounds more like our gym teacher is friends with a pop star who has a crush on him. That is just disturbing. She's like our age. "

"A pop star who despises his wife." Ryan said as he switched to rap song _Hey Lucy_. "Actually Maddie is almost 30 and has a Foster daughter that is two years younger than us. It was her former handlers that dressed her like a naughty school girl barely out of high school."

_Hey there Lucy_

_Where is your man?_

_Because I can make him come_

_Better than you can._

_You've been playing games_

_Oh what a shame_

_Two men at the same time_

_Oh my my_

_Soon your love will be mine_

"Finally someone exposes daddy secret and no one's going to know it's him." Ryan said as he refilled his glass of champagne.

"What's going on?"

"Apparently Maddie feels like airing some dirty laundry," part of him would love to tell Taylor about his father's dirty affair. For some reason he just couldn't tell her. He was having way too fun much to sitting with her and goofing off to end it with a serious conversation. This is the most fun he's ever had at a party thrown by his father for him or his twin.

They spent the next half an hour getting completely wasted on champagne and making snide jokes about the album. They were now lying together side by side with his arm around. A slower song was now playing.

_I was never supposed to meet you_

_Chance encounter of the life changing kind_

_I think you my became a best friend_

_I can tell you everything I can never say_

He thought about what the lyrics were saying. In just a few weeks Taylor really did become his best friend. She understood him so well.

_I think I fell in love with you the next night_

_Can't stop thinking about that almost kiss_

_Secret phone calls from me to you_

_Sending me private message your love will never see_

Her fingers entwined with his. He could feel the warmth of her lips on his neck. There were too intimate at that moment to be just friends. He couldn't help but wonder what it would be like if she moved just a little closer. He so badly wanted to fill her lips on his skin.

_It's such a sin_

_Such a shameful sin_

_To fall in love with someone else's love_

_Desire someone you know you should never have_

There was reality again reminding him that Taylor was not his. He would be no better to then father if he made a move.

_In my heart I already need you_

That was very true. It was already too late because Taylor was in his heart.

_I'm falling in love someone who I can't have_

_I want to be loved by you_

That's when the last thing he ever expected to happen did happen. Taylor McKessie was kissing him. Not the soft almost chaste kisses he receives from Kelsi. These were full on rip your close off and have your wicked way with me kisses. It was the most sensual thing he ever experienced up to that point. He couldn't hear the words of the song anymore. All he could hear was the sound of his heart speeding up as she continued her ministrations. Eventually common sense kicked back in and he pulled away from her. This is so wrong. He couldn't be making out with his friend's girlfriend.

_I know you can fill the connection between you and me_

_Want to touch you, kiss you, love you_

He was almost ready to leave. Run away from her and the temptation of her. He looked into her eyes and knew he could never do that. This time he kissed her. He felt like he was on fire and touch of her tongue, her hands upon him was too much. When she started to unbuttoned his shirt, he didn't think about betraying Kelsi. When he pulled Taylor's dress over her head, he didn't think about stabbing his best guy friend in the back. When he pulled the condom out of the dresser drawer, he didn't think about how he was truly becoming his father's son. He would think about those things tomorrow and by then tomorrow would be too late. Tomorrow he would be completely in love with her.

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A/N: all the lyrics in this chapter are original


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